St. Charles de Foucauld, Priest and Hermit

December 1

Charles Eugène de Foucauld, Viscount of Foucauld, born on 15 September 1858 in Strasbourg (France), died on 1 December 1916 in Tamanrasset (Algeria), was a cavalry officer in the French Army, then an explorer and geographer, and finally a Catholic priest, hermit who lived among the Tuareg in the Sahara in Algeria. He was assassinated in 1916 and is considered by the Church to be a martyr. His inspiration and writings led to the founding of the Little Brothers of Jesus among other religious congregations. He was beatified on 13 November 2005 by Pope Benedict XVI.

On 1 December 1916, Charles de Foucauld was assassinated at his hermitage. He was quickly considered to be a martyr and was the object of veneration following the success of the biography written by René Bazin (1921). New religious congregations, spiritual families, and a renewal of eremitic life are inspired by Charles de Foucauld's life and writings.

His beatification process started only eleven years after his death, in 1927. It was interrupted during the Algerian War, resumed later, and Charles de Foucauld was declared Venerable on 24 April 2001 by Pope John Paul II, then Blessed on 13 November 2005 by Pope Benedict XVI. His memorial occurs on December 1. The Holy Father Pope Francis canonized Bl. Charles in 2022.